¡Hola amigos y familia! Time here in Costa Rica has been
flying by; I can’t believe I have finished my third week here already. I am
really enjoying and taking in all that the culture and area has to offer. Here
are the highlights for this week (9/16-9/22):
Monday: I had Spanish class at COSI from 9am to 1pm and
class for NCC in the afternoon from 2-4pm. I then stayed for dance classes at
COSI. Dance class lasted for 1.5 hours and I am continuing to attempt to perfect
the Salsa and Merengue.
Tuesday: Today comprised of Spanish classes in the morning
and a very calm afternoon consisting of playing with Samuel and Antoine, doing
homework, and talking to my family via Skype. However, that night turned out to
be very eventful.
I received a taste of how the healthcare system in Costa
Rica works. A student from the NCC group, who lives across the street from me,
unfortunately had to go to the hospital tonight. Although everything turned out
to be okay, the adventure to the hospital was quite the experience and opened
my eyes to a whole new healthcare system and the many resources and modern
conveniences that we take for granted in the United States.
Wednesday: Once again I had class at COSI in the morning and
class for NCC in the afternoon. After classes, I came home to complete my
homework for the night. I later went to Zumba with my Mamá Tica. Today was my
papa’s birthday. So, after dinner tonight we ate some chocolate chip ice cream
to celebrate. I noticed that my family didn’t do too much to celebrate his
birthday. I proceeded to ask whether or not birthdays were a big celebration
here in Costa Rica. My host parents told me that for younger kids birthdays are
a big deal, specifically for girls who are turning 15. However, as you age birthdays
are just another day and another year for adults.
Thursday: Spanish class in the morning, Café Milagro,
homework, Zumba, and Trivia night at Dos Locos filled my schedule today. Café Milagro is a cute café within 5 minute
walking distance from COSI. They are infamous for their espresso shakes, so
naturally I had to try one out for myself. The shake is made of chocolate chip
ice cream, milk, and coffee. It is quite possibly the best shake that I have
ever had…yes, I know this is saying a lot! Zumba was both exciting and
exhausting as always. Once again, I went to Trivia night at Dos Locos. My team
added a new member this week, my roommate named David. We hoped with his years
of wisdom he would be able to help us pull out a victory. Although that was not
the case this week, we are aiming to take home the gold next week!
Friday: As always, we took a quiz today in class. However,
the quiz this week compared to last week was very lengthy, nearly 10 pages. I made
a goal for myself this week to preform better on this quiz and I was able to
reach my goal. Each week I am beginning to feel more and more confident in my
Spanish. Although there are always ups and downs along the way, I am looking
forward to the weeks ahead. After class today, I came home to work on my
homework so that I could have a fun weekend in Jacó with friends!
Saturday: Kayla, Tara, Jacob, Theresa, and I all left for
Jacó around noon today. Kayla, Tara, and Theresa’s host dad (Juan) has a house
in Jacó where we visited for the weekend. Juan picked us up in a Tourism van
similar to the one that we drove from San José to Quepos upon arrival. We
quickly stopped at the grocery store for food for the weekend and we were on
our way. It took about 45 minutes to get to the house in Jacó. Along the way,
we drove through a small town, across a river, along side forests of palm
trees, and farms of cattle. Upon arriving in Jacó the five of us could not
believe the size of the house that we would be staying in for the next 48
hours. This house was a rarity in Costa Rica. The house had tile floors, air
conditioning, granite counter tops, hot water, multiple bedrooms and multiple
levels to the house. We concluded after much pondering that Juan co-owns the
house with a friend from the states. After settling in to the enormous house we
would be staying in, we headed to Playa Hermosa to hopefully go surfing.
However, once we arrived at the beach it was already 4:30 in the afternoon. We
decided that surfing wouldn’t be worth our money today, as the sun would be setting
soon and we could surf some other weekend. Instead, we watched multiple surfers
from the beach while taking in the beautiful sunset.
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| The beautiful sunset at Playa Hermosa in Jacó |
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| Just enjoying the beauty |
Sunday: Today was a day to rewind from the excitement from
the weekend as well as a day of travel back to Quepos from Jacó. Overall, Jacó was a nice
place to visit for a weekend, but the town is very touristy and I am glad that
we only spent a short period of time there. Tonight was Leandra’s (my roommate
from Switzerland) last night in Quepos. So, a group of us went out to celebrate
and say our goodbyes. I miss Leandra already and I am hoping that I can see her
when I am in San José because she will be working as a volunteer at a school
not too far away.
One last tid-bit, dinners this week were delicious as always!
I realized that I have been here for three weeks now and it continues to amaze
me the variety of meals that we eat here...all equally delicious! My Mama Tica is a wonderful cook and
to my surprise we have not eaten the same meal since I have arrived. Wow!
Thank you all for reading! ¡Hasta luego!
~Kailey
